Angelita Bradney is a prize-winning fiction writer living in south-east London. Her work has been published in literary magazines, three anthologies and performed on stage.

You can read many of her short stories below, including All that water must be unimaginably heavy, which won the 2017 National Memory Day short story competition. You can also find details of her unpublished novel, Saint Michael.

“Angelita’s writing is clear, cold, seemingly dispassionate, taking us to the heart of trauma and its effects on memory, leaving the reader with the spaces to wonder what we and history may also choose to forget. This is superb writing: both imaginatively rich and confidently spare in crafting.” Cathy Galvin, Director of The Word Factory, Co-Founder of The Sunday Times EFG Short Story Prize, and judge of the 2017 National Memory Day short story competition.

Novel: Saint Michael

When secrets from the past are revealed, and a daughter goes missing, bickering brothers Mike and John must put aside their differences before the family falls apart.

Overview

Saint Michael is a contemporary family drama. The story begins when Mike Maitland, a builder and an alcoholic, returns from exile in rural France. Tensions between him and his uptight brother, John, are due to more than their different personalities, but rooted in a family secret that Mike has never accepted. Meanwhile, John’s teenage daughter, Claire, is pursuing a career as a violinist, but a crush on her music teacher can only lead to disaster. After a brutal experience she goes missing. Mike holds the key to where she is, but before the family can pull together, he must face his deepest fears.

Saint Michael is about how secrets can divide us or bring us together, the crises that expose our strengths and weaknesses, and the different ways we show love. Through the contrasting attitudes of its characters, it explores how we react to wrongs such as the abuse of unequal power relationships, or the degradation of the environment. Saint Michael would appeal to fans of Maggie O’Farrell as well as The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen or The Trouble with Goats and Sheep by Joanna Cannon.

Photo by Seb Cumberbirch.

More information

Angelita started writing Saint Michael while studying for a certificate in novel writing at London's City University, and completed it on the Faber Academy 'Writing a Novel' course in 2017/18. As a work-in-progress, her novel was longlisted in the 2018 Flash500 novel opening competition and longlisted with honorable mention in the 2018 Retreat West first chapter competition.

Short stories and flash fiction

Angelita's short stories and flash fiction have been published in various literary magazines and anthologies. A couple of her favourites are Gap(published by Ellipsis Zine) and Is there magic here (published by The Fiction Pool).

Angelita's work has also been longlisted and shortlisted in competitions including the Fish prize, Inktears, Dorset Fiction Award, Writers' Forum magazine and Shooter Literary Magazine. She won the 2017 National Memory Day short story competition with All that water must be unimaginably heavy.

The judge, Cathy Galvin, Director of The Word Factory and Co-Founder of The Sunday Times EFG Short Story Prize, commented:

“Angelita’s writing is clear, cold, seemingly dispassionate, taking us to the heart of trauma and its effects on memory, leaving the reader with the spaces to wonder what we and history may also choose to forget. This is superb writing: both imaginatively rich and confidently spare in crafting.”

You can read the story, along with the winners from the other categories, here.